rg^^^^Q^a^g^a^^^sgagaa;^ ^ 



LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. % 
Chap.^.nA 

Shelf yJl^l'X.^X 



UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 



SERMON 

DELIVERED AT SOUTHBOROUGH, 

JULY 17, 1827, 
THE DAV -WHICH COMPZ.ETZ!D A CEMrTURir 

FROM THE 

INCORPORATION OF THE TOWN. 



By JEROBOAM PARKER, 

MINISTER OF SOUTHBOROUGH. 



[printed by REQUEST.] 



The fashion of this world passeth away..; the apostle paul. 

Your fathers, where are they? zachariah. 

We desire, that every one of you do shew the same dihgence to the full as- 
surance of hope unto the end ; that ye be not slothful, but followers o 
them, who through faith and patience inherit the promises. 

THE apostle PAUL. 



BOSTON : 
.loHN Marsh State-Street 1827 




7<? 



SERMON. 



ECCLESIASTES 1. 4. 

«SE GENERATION PA8SETH AWAY, AND ANOTHER GENERATION COM- 
ETH, BUT THE EARTH ABIDETH FOREVER. 

This earth, through all the changes and revolu- 
tions of time, has been, and will continue to be, mate- 
rially the same to the consummation of all things. — 
But when it has fully answered the purposes of its 
formation, as a theatre for the display of the varying 
dispensations of God, " the elements will melt with 
fervent heat, the earth also, and the works that are 
therein, shall be burned up; and the heavens shall 
be rolled together, as a scroll," and time will be suc- 
ceeded by eternity. 

" One generation passeth away, and another gen- 
eration Cometh, but the earth abideth for ever." 

This solemn declaration of the wise man, with re- 
spect to the instability of all things, but the globe on 
which we dwell, is emphatically true in its most ex- 
tensive sense, whether we apply it to the animal or 
vegetable world. 

All that springs from the earth, or lives upon it, is 
fading and transient. All around us, life and death 
are presented to our view in quick succession. The 
verdure of spring, the maturity of summer, and the 



decline of autumn are succeeded by the winter of 
death. Again, the face of the earth is renewed with 
hfe and beauty, rising from the ruins of the departed 
year, but doomed, like that which preceded it, to 
fall and disappear. 

Such are the scenes and changes, presented to our 
view in the vegetable creation, and such is the con- 
dition of the animal world. All creatures that in- 
habit the air, the earth, and the waters — all have 
their respective periods of growth, maturity and de- 
chne, and all, like those that preceded them, arc 
destined to pass away in their turn, to give place to 
those who shall come after them. 

But it is to the destiny of man, who is subject to 
the same inviolable law of mortality, succession and 
change, that the inspired writer Avould direct our at- 
tention. — " One generation passeth away, and anoth- 
e I* generation cometh." — "Is there not an appointed 
time to man upon the, earth ? — His days are deter- 
mined, the number of his months are with thee ; 
thou hast appointed his bounds, that he cannot pass. 
He cometh forth like a flower and is cut down ; he 
fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not." 

This solemn truth is perpetually enforced upon 
our minds by the changes we observe in the crea- 
tures around us, and which we feel in ourselves. 
Had the Holy Scriptures been silent upon this sub- 
ject, our own observation and experience might have 
taught us the solemn and interesting truths contain- 
ed in our text. 

As we are but of yesterday, how small is the 
space we have occupied? How little have we seen 
of the chain of events ? How inadequate our con- 



ceptions of that Avliich lias been, when comparetf 
with its real maofnitude and extent? 

How many miUions have Hved and died, since the 
sentence of death passed upon our guilty race? 
How of<^en has this earth been filled and emptied 
of its inhabitants? Time has swept over it, age 
after age, with its consuming wave, bearing away 
successive generations to the ocean of eternity. 

Where are the myriads unnumbered and untold, 
who inhabited the antediluvian world, or who have 
lived in succeeding ages? They have fallen and 
disappeared, like the leaves of autumn. Where are 
the mighty kingdoms and empires, which have risen 
and fallen, and been lost in the wreck of ages ? 
Where arc the magnificence and glory of Egypt, 
Assyria, Palestine, Greece and Rome? Where are 
their armies, as numerous as the locusts, and the 
people, as the sands on the sea-shore for multitude? 
Where are the majestic monuments of their great- 
ness, and the splendid trophies of martial glory and 
victory ? 

If history had not recorded their greatness, and 
the ruins of vast cities, and gigantic structures had 
not been visible to this day, posterity would have 
been ignorant of their ancient glory, and even of 
their existence. 

All these had their respective seasons of groAvth, 
maturity and decline, like the successive productions 
of the vegetable Avorld, and no traces of their form- 
er existence remain, but theii* rums. 

But, to bring the subject nearer to the scene of 
our own existence. — How little do we know of the 



ancient history of our own country, and of its first 
inhabitants ? 

Notwithstanding the great and numerous changes 
and revokitions, which have taken place upon the 
surface of this globe in the lapse of ages, monu- 
ments remain, and traces are still visible of a race of 
men, who once inhabited this continent, who had 
made nearer appt-oaches to civilization, and greater 
progress in the arts of peace and war, than any of 
the numerous tribes of North American Indians. 
But where are they ? Of which of the sons of 
Noah were they descendants ? At what period did 
they pass from the eastern to the western continent, 
and by what means? What were their numbers, — 
their wars and revolutions, — their manners and cus- 
toms, rites and ceremonies, — their language, — their 
religion? How long did they exist, as a people, and 
at what period did they become extinct? Their 
history does not exist. — Tradition is silent. Ask 
the present inhabitants of the wilderness, — ask them 
what their fathers have told them. You ask in 
vain. They can give you no satisfactory account of 
their own origin, — whence they came, — or of the 
generations that preceded them. Midnight dark- 
ness rests upon their memory. They are lost to all 
future inquiry, like the forests that covered them. 
" The memorial of them is forgotten." 

" Thou carriest them away as with a flood. One 
generation passeth away, and another generation 
Cometh." But with God, there is neither succes- 
sion nor change. He is "the same yesterday, to-day, 
and forever, with whom is no variableness neitlier 



shadow of turning." With him one day is as a 
thousand years, and a thousand years as one day. 
Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever 
thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even 
from everlasting to everlasting thou art God." 

Shall we then, amid the ravages of death and 
time, exclaim with the Psalmist, " Lord, hast thou 
made all men in vain?"* Even death, as well as 
life, is under his control, and subservient to his great 
and glorious purposes. Though " he turneth man 
to destruction, he saith return, ye children of men." 

But the gloomy picture of succession and change, 
is not a subject on which the human mind delights 
to dwell. The history of past generations is not 
merely that they lived and died. It is connected 
with changes and events, in which they, as moral 
agents, under Providence, acted their respective 
parts upon the great theatre of the world, — events 
which have had a greater or less influence upon the 
character and destiny of those who have succeeded 
them, and upon the civil, moral, and religious condi- 
tion of man. 

Were we only to glance at some of the great 
events, which sacred and profane history have re- 
corded, the consequences of which have been felt 
in all succeeding generations, we should refer you 
to the fall of man, — the first transgression, which 
has involved a world in sin and death, — the source 
of all our woe, — to that sentence, which has been 
awfully executed in the antediluvian world, and in all 
successive generations of men, — to the early prom- 

* Psalm Ixxxix. 47. 



8 

ise of a Saviour, — to the purposes of grace, and 
the increasing hght of the revelations of God, 
through the patriarchal. Mosaic, and prophetic ages, 
till the " sun of righteousness* arose with healing in 
his wings" upon a " world lying in wickedness," and 
" brought life and immortality to ligiit," — to the life 
sufferings, death, resurrection, and ascension of Him, 
who came to destroy the dominion of sin and death 
in them that believe, — to the prevalence and tri- 
umph of the gospel over the combined opposition 
of the powers of earth and darkness for eight- 
teen hundred years, — and to the gracious and ani- 
mating assurance, that the knowledge and glory of 
God will fill the earth, " as the waters fill the seas." 

We might point your attention to the completion 
of prophecies, — to the history of divine Provi- 
dence towards his ancient people, who have been 
miraculously preserved for the display of the future 
manifestations of God, — to the great actors on the 
stage of the world, since the Christian era, whom he 
has raised up and qualified to effect his purposes, — to 
the changes and revolutions of the natural, civil, and 
moral world in later ages, — to the reformation from 
popery, after a long night of despotism, ignorance 
and superstition, — to the prevalence of the light of 
truth, and the benign influence of the gospel upon 
the condition of man. 

It would not be difficult to show, that a great part 
of the most useful discoveries have been made since 
the commencement of the Christian era, and some of 
the most important of them, since the eleventh centu- 

* Mai. iv. 2. 



ry, when new lights rose upon the world. Men 
awoke, as it were, from the shimber of ages, soared 
above the narrow prejudices of tlieir ancestors, and 
gave a wider range to their thoughts and inquiries. 
New inventions and improvements in the arts and 
sciences were soon succeeded by a spirit of enter- 
prise. Men began to traverse the ocean and cir- 
cumnavigate the globe. 

In 1492, this western continent was discovered by 
Columbus, and a new world was brought to view. — 
This discovery was soon followed by emigrations 
from the old to the new world. 

But the occasion, on which we have assembled, 
requires us to confine our views to more recent 
events, and to the age in which we live. 

This day completes a century since the town of 
Southborough had a distinct and corporate exist- 
ence. 

What important changes and revolutions have 
taken place in this period, and many of them within 
our own recollections ! — changes and revolutions in 
which some of us have been actors, and in which 
we have felt a deep and lasting interest. 

The wheels of Providence, like the silent and ir- 
resistible operations of nature, have been rolling on 
to effect the purj oscs of Heaven, in the natural, 
civil, and moral world. 

►Since the commencement of the year 1727, what 
alterations have taken place in the surface of this 
globe, besides the usual changes and recurrences of 
nature ! In South America, Lima, and Callao, in 
Kuropc. l^isbon and a great number of towns or vil- 



10 

lages in Italy, with their inhabitants, have been 
swallowed up ©r destroyed by successive earth- 
quakes. 

In the civil world, commotions Jio less destructive 
in their effects, and more extensive in their conse- 
quences, have shaken the nations of the earth. — 
The events of this period are prominent in the his- 
tory of the world, and arc doubtless particularly 
marked in prophecy. 

Besides others of minor importance, it appears 
that, since the year 1732, when Kouli Khan usurj> 
ed the Persian throne, and conquered the Mogul 
empire, there have been no less than seventeen 
wars between nations called Christian. In three of 
which, this nation has been deeply interested and 
actually engaged. These wars, with their attendant 
evils, have been preceded or followed by no less 
than eight important revolutious in the same, or in 
different countries. 

Every quarter of the globe has been more or less 
agitated. Great and unexpected events have taken 
place in rapid succession. Europe has exhibited a 
scene of horror and desolation, almost unparalleled 
in history. Thousands have fallen upon the high 
places of the field. Some nations have been over- 
whelmed or dismembered by conquest : others have 
emerged from obscurity. Russia, from a mere 
dukedom, has risen to the first rank among the na- 
tions of the earth — has arrested the rage of ambi- 
tion and the torrent of conquest, and driven back 
the flood of desolation to its source. Thrice has 
the British throne been vacated, and filled by suc- 
cessive kings. 



11 

In the west and in the east, nations, crushed for 
ages, by Papal or Mahometan despotism, seem ris- 
ing from the ashes of their ancestors to avenge their 
wrongs, and assert their Hberty and independence. 

But perhaps no revolution, recorded in the civil 
history of nations, is more important in its results, 
and more extensive in its consequences to the human 
family, than that which has taken place in our own 
country, ft was the day-star of liberty, civil and 
religious — the dawn of a brighter day upon the 
world. Its influence has already been extensively 
felt and acknowledged, and nations, yet unborn, will 
hail it as the commencement of a new era in the 
history of the melioration of the condition of man. 

No less important have been the changes and 
revolutions in the literary, moral, and religious 
world. 

Men have not only begun to see and acknowledge 
the rights of humanity, but to Jcel and to act. — 
Hence the important changes in public sentiment 
and opinion. Customs and prejudices, sanctioned by 
time, and supported by worldly policy and interest, 
and which had scarcely been called in question, half 
a century ago, have been brought to the test of rea- 
son and Scripture, and found wanting. Hence the 
abolition of the slave trade among Christian nations, 
and hence the increasing opposition to the unchris- 
tian custom of war. 

The period in which we live may be emphatical- 
ly called the age of inquiry, invention and improve- 
ment in the arts and sciences, and of benevolent in- 
stitutions, and religious enterprise. Many have run 



12 

to and fro, and knowledge is increased. The Chris- 
tian world has received a powerful impulse, and 
seems rising in the strength of the Lord, to melio- 
rate the condition of man, and to provide for his 
spiritual wants. No age, perhaps, since the time of 
the apostles, has seen so many benevolent institutions 
and exertions to civilize and Christianize the world, 
as the present, and within the space of thirty years 
past. The abodes of misery and want are visited to 
alleviate the sufferings of humanity. The regions 
of moral darkness and the shadow of death are ex- 
plored, — the vast ocean is traversed, to carry the 
news of a Saviour to the islands of the sea, and to 
every quarter of the globe. The angel of the ev- 
erlasting gospel seems to be now on the wing, flying 
in the midst of heaven, " to preach unto them that 
dwell on the earth ; to every nation, and kindred, 
and tongue, and people ;" and to announce the dawn 
of the millennial day. 

But to notice more particularly a few only of the 
most prominent events of the past century, would 
exceed the limits prescribed by the present occasion. 

To retrace the footsteps of that Providence, that 
" assigneth unto man the bounds of his habitation," 
in that series of events which led to the discovery 
and settlement of this continent, and cast our lot in 
this region of the earth, must be a delightful em- 
ployment to every grateful and pious mind. 

In many respects the history of this nation is sim- 
ilar to that of God's chosen people. Like them, 
our fathers were preserved in the sea and in the 
wildernessj then unexplored, and inhabited by fero- 



13 

cioiis beasts and hostile savages. Their infa?it set- 
tlement was protected, and the heathen driven out 
before them. Though not led by a pillar of a cloud 
by day, and of fire by night, yet the conduct of 
Providence is conspicuous in every period of their 
history. 

A small company of Puritans, so called, rather 
than endure the spirit of intolerance and persecution 
in their own country, sought refuge on these then 
inhospitable shores ; where they might enjoy, unmo- 
lested, the rights of freemen, and the liberty of wor- 
shipping God according to the dictates of their own 
consciences. 

In November 20, 1620, O. S. they approached 
the American coast, and anchored in the harbor 
near Cape Cod. Having devoutly rendered thanks 
to God for their preservation, and committed them- 
selves to his protection, they proceeded to establish 
such a form of government as appeared adapted to 
the exigencies of their affairs, landed in Vv hat is now 
called Plymouth, and commenced their first settle- 
ment. 

The spirit, enterprise, and perseverance of these 
pilgrims will appear from the dangers they encoun- 
tered, the difficulties they overcame, and the rapid 
progress of emigration. 

In 1628, eight years after the landing of the fath- 
ers, a settlement was commenced at Naumkeag, 
now called Salem, which, except Plymouth, is the 
oldest town in this Commonwealth. 

About this time their number and strength were 
considerably increased by the arrival of a large com- 



14 

pany of adventurers from England, wlio brought 
with them the same principles of liberty, which had 
succesfully resisted tlie encroachments of tyranny 
and oppression in their own country. 

The same year, or before 1629, a settlement 
was Yiiade at Charlestown, then called by the Indians 
Mishawum, and at Mystic or Medford, which was 
incorporated in 1630. At this period, Shawmut, 
now Boston, began to be built. 

The tide of emigration, which was continually in- 
creased by new accessions from the old world, con- 
tinued to roll on towards the west. The wilder- 
ness was explored, and permanent settlements made 
at a orreater distance from the sea-coast. Water- 
town was incorporated in 1630 ; Cambridge in 1633 ; 
Concord was purchased of the natives, and incorpo- 
rated in 1635 ; Sudbury was settled and incorporat- 
ed in 1639, and in 1656 a settlement was commenc- 
ed at Marlborough by emigrants from Sudbury, four 
years before the date of its incorporation in 1660. 
Hence it appears that the progress of emigration 
had reached this place in about thirty years after 
the commencement of the Massachusetts Colony, 
and that Marlborouo;h, which then included West- 
borou2;h, Southborough, and Northborough, was at 
that time a frontier settlement, bordering on the 
unexplored wilderness, inhabited by the natives. 

In 16.56 a petition was presented to the General 
Court, by thirteen persons,* for a grant of land 
" 8 miles square, or so much land as may containe to 
8 miles square." This petition was answered by 

* Appendix 1. 



15 

the Court by a grant of " a proportion of land of (J 
miles, or otherwise, in some convenient form equiv- 
alent thereto, at the discretion of the committee," 
appointed to lay out and estabhsh the bounds of the 
same, " in the place desired." 

According to a plan of the English plantation, 
made in the year 1667, it contained 29,419 acres, 
which, with 6,000 acres reserved for the Indians, 
and afterwards annexed to Marlborough, amounted 
to 35,419 acres. 

In 1657 the number of proprietors was twenty- 
one, eight others having been added to the thirteen 
original proprietors. 

Notwithstanding the usual changes and revolutions 
in human society, and the perpetual fluctuations of 
property, and after the lapse of nearly one hundred 
and seventy years, it is evident from the great num- 
ber of persons, now^ living within the original bounds 
of Marlborough, who bear the names of the first 
proprietors, that their possessions, in many instances, 
are now in the hands of their descendants. The 
descendants of Richard Newton, one of the original 
petitioners, have occupied the same farm, (no^v with- 
in the bounds of Southborough) on which he lived 
and died, where his great grand-son* now lives, aged 
ninety-three years, and his descendants to the seventh 
generation! A rare instance in the history of fami- 
lies in this ever-changing world! 

The settlement commenced in the neigliborhood 
of the Indian planting field, an Ockoocangansett, 
(the Indian name of the hill, back of the old mect- 

*Solomon Newton. 



u 

mg-liouse in Marlborough) and extended to Whip- 
suppenicke, another hill about a mile south-easterly 
of the former, and in the adjacent parts. "By this 
name Whipsuppenicke or Whipsufferage, as it wa^ 
sometimes written, the English plantation of Marl- 
borough was known, till the time of its incorpora- 
tion in 1660." 

To provide for the public worship of God, and 
the instruction of youth, were among the first objects 
to which the attention of the proprietors was direct- 
ed. These they effected according to their means^ 
with a harmony and unanimity, which were no less 
honorable to their character, than conducive to their 
interest. In 1660, measures were adopted for the 
maintenance of public worship, and in 1662 for build* 
ifii^ a meeting-iiouse, which was erected on the old 
Common, and was afterwards burnt by the Indians. 

From the commencement of this infant settlement 
to the time of King Philip's war, in the year 1675, 
the inhabitants lived in peace and friendly inter- 
course with their Indian neighbors. But in 1676, 
Feb. 10, O. S. a party of Indians, having destroyed 
Lancaster, continued their desolating march through 
Marlborough, where they committed depredations 
on their way to Sudbury and Medtield, where more 
than forty dwelling-houses were burnt, and fifteen 
persons fell a sacrifice to savage barbarity. 

In March following, a second attack was made up- 
on Marlboroujfh on the Sabbath, when the inhabi- 
tants were assembled in the meeting-house for pub- 
lic worship. They with difficulty made their escape 
to a neighboring garrison in safety ; but their meet- 



17 

ing-house and many dwelling-houses were burnt, 
and most of their personal property was injured or 
destroyed. 

Such was the alarm occasioned by these repeated 
attacks, that they retired from their settlement to a 
place of safety, and returned to their possessions at 
the close of the war, and erected another meeting- 
house near the site of the former. 

From this period, it appears that the English set- 
tlers in Marlborough remained unmolested till the 
year 1704, when a small party of Indians surprised 
a number of the inhabitants of what is now West- 
borough, while at work in tlie field, killed one per- 
son, and carried four others into captivity, in 1707, 
a woman was surprised and killed by a party of In- 
dians, at a small distance from her house, in that 
part of Marlborough, now within the bounds of 
Northborough. 

Such was the danger and alarm at that period of 
savage warfare, that in 1711 there were no less 
than twenty-six dwelling-houses, (then called garri- 
sons) supplied with arms, fortified, and surrounded 
with enclosures within the original hmits of Marl- 
borough, which contained at that time about one 
hundred and thirty-seven families. 

'• Our ears have heard and our fathers have told 
us" talcs of desolation and wo. But at this period, 
Avhile we enjoy the fruits of their labors and priva- 
tions, "under our vines and fig-trees, having none to 
molest or make us afraid," how little can we know 
or conceive of the difficulties and dangers to which 
they Avere exposed; when not only property, but 
3 



18 

life was insecure in the house, as well as in the field, 
and their midnight slumbers were liable to be brok- 
en by the horrors of the savage war-whoop. 

But notwithstanding all these dangers and discour- 
agements, they brought up their children in habits 
of industry and economy. They provided means of 
instruction, both in the school and in the sanctuary. 
They reverenced the ordinances of God, — the insti- 
tutions of religion. They regarded the Sabbath as 
a most important and benevolent institution of heav- 
en. They reverently and conscienciously attended 
the public worship of God. Though many of them 
lived at a great distance from the place of meeting, 
and must pass more dangers than were found even 
in the valley of Baca,* no trivial excuse or slight 
inconvenience could detain them from the house of 
prayer, as the manner of many is, at this day, though 
even that sacred place was liable to be assailed by a 
merciless foe. Let us cherish their memory, while 
we enjoy the fruits of their labors ; let us grate- 
fully call to mind that Providence which was their 
shield and defence, and endeavor to resemble them 
in those virtues which they left for our imitation ; 
and especially let us imitate their piety to God, that 
we may rationally hope and trust that he will be 
our God, as he was the God of our fathers. " One 
generation shall praise thy works to another, and 
shall declare thy mighty acts" among the people. 

Soon after this period, it appears that the settle- 
ment had been extended in every direction towards 
the borders of the town. 

» * Psalm Ixxxiv. 6. - 



19 

The increase of wealth and population, and the 
considerable distance of many of the inhabitants 
from the place of public worship, rendered it neces- 
sary for their accommodation that a separation 
should take place. 

In 1717 the inhabitants of the westerly part of 
Marlborough, then called Chauncy Village, and in- 
cluding what is now Westborough and North bor- 
ough, were incorporated as a separate town, and in 
1718 erected a meeting-house for public worship. — 
In 1744 Westborough was divided into two pre- 
cincts, and Northborough became a separate parish, 
and in 1766 was incorporated as a town. 

In 1727 the inhabitants of the southeHy part of 
Marlborough, now Southborough, petitioned to be 
set off as a separate township. 

The harmony and unanimity with which the sep- 
aration was effected, will appear from a record of 
the proceedings of the inhabitants of Marlborough 
at a town- meeting, June 12, 1727. The town pro- 
ceeded to choose a committee to confer with the 
petitioners about settling a hne between them and 
the town. The line having been agreed upon, and 
accepted, at the same meeting, the town voted, that 
the inhabitants of Stony Brook be set off, as a sepa- 
rate township, — that the towns would join with them 
to petition the General Court, — and that the select- 
men, or a major part of them, should join with them 
on the town's behalf for a confirmation of said town- 
ship.* 

♦ Marlborough Town Records. 



20 

In July 6, 1727, O. S. or according to our present 
rcckonin;^, July 17, the inhabitants of this part of 
iMarlborough were incorporated by an act of the 
General Court, and, from its local situation in the 
ancient town of Marlborough, was called Southbo- 
roujjh. 

The name by which it was known previously to 
the time of its incorporation was Stony Brook, prob- 
ably from a stream of water, which still bears this 
name, and has its source near the western limits of 
Southborough, and passes in an easterly direction 
through the centre of the town into Framingham, 
where it falls into Sudbury river. 

Most of that part of the town, which lies north 
of Stony Brook was anciently known by the name 
of Cow Commons, from the circumstance of its hav- 
ing been improved by the original proprietors of 
Marlborough, as a common pasture. Tradition in- 
forms us, that daily information concerning their 
cattle was given them by the Indians, (then living 
among them,) on their return from their hunting ex- 
cursions. 

It does not appear from any records in our pos- 
session, that any person was killed, or any remarka- 
ble depredations committed by the Indians within 
the bounds of this town. Tradition only informs us, 
that a man, being pursued by the Indians, effected 
his escape by taking refuge in a small thicket in a 
meadow, a little north of Southborough meeting- 
house. The spot has since been regarded as a me- 
morial too sacred to be invaded by the axe or the 
scythe. 



21 

The bounds of Southborough have remained 
nearly the same as they were at the time of its in- 
corporation. But in the year 1780, certain inhabit- 
ants of a part* of Framingham, bordering on Sudbu- 
ry river, and lying between Southborough and Hop- 
kinton, petitioned to be set off to this town. In 
1785, this tract of land, consisting of about 300 
acres, was annexed to Southborough. With this ad- 
dition the town (according to tlie plan takent in May, 
1795, now in the office of the Secretary of this 
Commonwealth,) contains 9,122 acres, including 
ponds and brooks. 

The number of inhabitants within the bounds of 
Southborough, previously to the year 1727, and the 
number and names of the petitioners for an act of 
incorporation, we have not been able to ascertain 
from any records in cur possession. 

Subsequent to this period, it appears that there 
were, m 1793, 120 dwelling-houses, 150 famliies, 
and 840 inhabitants ; and according to the census in 
1810, 160 families, and 933 inhabitants ; and in 1820 
1,030 inhabitants. 

For the satisfaction of those, who may feel a lo- 
cal interest in the civil transactions of the inhab- 
itants of this place, w^e may observe, that it ap- 
pears, from the records of this town, that the first 
town-meeting was held at the house;}: of Timothy 
Brigham, August 28, 1727, attested by William 

* This tract of land, from its fonn and situation with respect to Framing- 
ham, wa» then c;illed Fiddle Neck. 

t By Nathan Bridges, of Soutliborough. 

i A little east of the place where the mceting-housc now stand'. 



22 

Johnson, jr. Moderator, — that in March following, 
1728, town-officers were chosen, — that the first per- 
son chosen to represent the town in the General 
Court was Samuel Lyscom, in 1740, — that Jonathan 
Ward attended the Provincial Congress convened 
at Concord, in 1774, — and that in 1780, Dr. James 
Parker was chosen a Delegate to the Convention, 
convened at Cambridge, to form the Constitution of 
this State. 

By a reference to the records of this town, it will 
appear that the inhabitants took an early and de- 
cided part in defence of the liberties of our country, 
and bore a full share in the burdens and privations 
of the revolutionary conflict, previously to its com- 
mencement, and during its continuance. 

As early as the year 1765, after noticing the a- 
larming situation of the country, under the burden 
of new impositions, and unconstitutional taxes, by 
which they, as loyal British subjects, were deprived 
of their unalienable and inestimable rights, among 
others the following in tru ctions were unanimously 
voted in town-meeting, to be given to their repre- 
sentative* : " That you w^ould, in the most effectual 
and loyal manner, firmly assert and lawfully main- 
tain the inherent rights of the Province ; — that pos- 
terity may know that, if we must be slaves, we do 
not choose by our own acts to destroy ourselves, 
and willingly entail slavery on them." 

In March, 1773, a committee was chosen, and di- 
rected to report the rights and privileges of the 
Province. The report was made and accepted, and 

* Ezra Taylor, Esq, 



23 

the town-clerk was directed to transmit a copy of 
the same to the Committee of Correspondence in 
Boston. 

In 1774, a standing committee of correspondence 
was chosen to unite and correspond with other com- 
mittees. 

Ev^ery person capable of bearing arms, from six- 
teen years and upwards, was armed according to 
law, and officers chosen to instruct them in the mil- 
itary art. 

The same year the inhabitants entered into an 
agreement not to purchase or consume any goods, 
wares or merchandize, which should arrive in Amer- 
ica from Great-Britain, and that they would not 
commence needless law-suits against the honest and 
industrious, who were endeavoring to pay their 
debts, or take advantage of the pressure of the times 
to neglect their own obligations. 

About this time a company of volunteers was form- 
ed, and disciplined and supported at the expense 
of the town, to be in constant readiness to repel any 
attack of the enemy. 

To meet the pressing exigences of this and the 
following years of danger and alarm, great sacrific- 
es were patiently made. By perpetual requisitions 
new expenses were incurred, and new privations en- 
dured. Many of the inhabitants of this and other 
towns were compelled to leave the occupations and 
comforts of domestic life to defend the rights of 
their country — all they held dear and important, as 
men and as citizens, upon the " high places of the 
field." Then in the expressive languaaro of that pe- 



24 

riod, " the rich murmured, and the poor groaned un- 
der burdens which neither they nor their fathers 
were able to bear." 

But I forbear to describe scenes, in which many 
of our fathers of this respected audience were ac- 
tors, and from whom vvc might receive more impor- 
tant information. 

In the act by which this town was incorporated, 
is the following provision : " Provided, also, that the 
inhabitants of the said town of Southborough do, 
within the space of eighteen months from the pub- 
hcation of this act, erect and furnish a suitable house 
for the public worsliip of God, and procure and set- 
tle a learned and orthodox minister of good conver- 
sation, and make provision for his comfortable and 
honorable support ; and likewise provide a school- 
master to instruct their youth in writing and read- 
ing. 

Agreeably to this provision at the first town-meet- 
ing, August 28, 1727, the folloAving measures were 
adopted.— A committee was chosen to provide a 
place for public meetings, and the town "voted to 
erect a meeting-house forty feet wide, and fifty feet 
long, on the most convenient place, nearest the cen- 
tre of the town," and a committee was chosen to as- 
certain the centre by admeasurement. 

At the same meeting, yonder sacred place, where 
are deposited the remains of so many of our dear 
friends, was selected, and afterwards devoted to its 
present use. 

From the proceedings of subsequent meetings it 
appears, tliat white pine timber from Musshcta* 

* Probably Moscheto swamp. 



•>'l 



swamp, and other materials were collected, and the 
necessary preparations made for erecting a meetmg- 
house immediately, and three hundred pounds pro- 
posed to be raised for that purpose. 

But, as a difference of opinion existed, with re- 
spect to the location of the house, the subject was 
referred to the arbitration of five respectable men 
from Marlborough and Westborough, who unani- 
mously agreed upon the spot west of the burymg- 



ground 



That their decision was to the general satisfaction 
of the inhabitants of this town, is evident from the 
harmony and unanunity of their proceedings. The 
same day the town proceeded to make preparations 
to raise the frame of the house, Avhich was erected 
on the place designated by the committee, Novem- 
ber, 1727. 

That house, which was the place, where our fa- 
thers worshipped, remained seventy-nine years, till 
the house in which we now worship, near the site 
of the former, was erected and dedicated to the 
worship of God, December 17, 1806. 

In October, 1727, the sum of twenty-five pounds 
was granted and appropriated by the town, as a 
"compensation for those ministers who should 
preach tlie word of God among them." 

From 1727 to 1730 it appears tliat the following 
ministers were employed to preacli in this place : — 
Messrs. Jennison of VVatertown, Cabbot, Bridgham, 
Nicolas Gillman, and Moses Hale. The two last 
were invited to settle in the ministry in tliis place, 
but did not accept the invitation. 



26 

In October 21, 1730, a church was gathered in 
this place, consisting of 17 male members, who sub- 
scribed to a covenant. The same day the Rev. 
Nathan Stone, a native of Harwich, was ordained 
first minister of this churcli and people. He con- 
tinued in this place to the 51st year of his ministry, 
and departed this life May 31, 1781, in the 74th 
year of his age. 

Nothing special is recorded, as having occurred 
during his ministry. But it appears, that, with the 
exception of a short period, he lived in peace and 
harmony with his people. Some of this audience, 
who yet remember him, are living witnesses of his 
faithfulness. The following character is given him 
by one of his contemporaries in the ministry. — " He 
was a judicious, prudent, and faithful minister of 
Christ, and was continued serving God in the gospel 
of his Son, to the great satisfaction of his people.*' 

Besides the seventeen members who composed 
the church at its formation, the additions to the 
church during his ministry were two hundred and 
seven ; one hundred and sixty-nine were admitted 
from this town, and thirty-eight from other church- 
es, besides two hundred and sixty who owned the 
covenant without coming to the Lord's table. Thir- 
ty-six were dismissed and recommended to other 
churches. Tiie baptisms were one thousand and 
sixty-two ; the marriages two hundred and fifty-one ; 
and the deaths five hundred and eighty-two. 

From the records of this period it appears, that 
the greatest number of deaths which have taken 
place in any year, since the incorporation of this 



27 

town, was from June 13, 1740, to June 15, 1741, 
when forty persons died, and thirty of them of the 
throat distemper. 

For ten years after the decease of Mr. Stone 
this town was destitute of a fettled minister, and a 
considerable number of ministers were employed to 
preach in this place. Several of them were succes- 
sively invited to settle here in the ministry, and 
each returned a negative answer. 

From the records of this period, though in some 
respects deficient, it appears that thirty persons 
were added to the church, twenty-seven from this 
town, and three from other churches ; five were 
dismissed and recommended ; eighteen owned the 
baptismal covenant ; one hundred and seventeen 
were baptized. The number of deaths was one 
hundred and three ; and the marriages found on 
record are only thirty-five. 

After this, the Rev. Samuel Sumner, a native of 
Shrewsbury, was called to the pastoral office in this 
place, and was ordained June 1, 1791. He was dis- 
missed, agreeably to his request, December 1, 1797. 

The additions to the church while he was minis- 
ter were thirty-four, twenty-nine from this town, 
and five from other churches ; twelve owned the 
covenant ; eleven were dismissed to other churches ; 
one hundred and seventeen were baptized. The 
marriages were thirty-six, and the deaths one hun- 
dred. 

From December 1, 1797, to October 9, 1799, 
there is a deficiency in the records. Seventeen 
deaths are recorded. During this time several minr 
ieters were employed to preach in this place. 



28 

Almost twenty-eight years ago, your present pas- 
tor was ordained to the ministerial office in this 
place. Though even a prophet must not expect 
either honor or emolument in his own country and 
among his own kindred; yet he would, on this occa- 
sion, evince his grateful sense of every expression of 
your favor, and of the candor with which you have 
attended his defective services ; and it is his prayer 
to the God of all grace, that his feeble exertions 
may " not be in vain in the Lord." 

Since his ordination, October 9, 1799, three 
hundred and ninety-six persons,* in thiy society have 
departed this life, — seventy-four have been added 
to the church, and about half that number within 
four years past, — sixty-two have been added from 
this town, and twelve from other churches. One 
hundred and seventy have received the ordmance of 
baptism; — thirteen have been dismissed from this 
church, and two hundred and tAventy-thrce have 
been united in marriage. As the baptismal cove- 
nant has been discontinued, none have been admit- 
ted to that covenant. 

Hence it appears that, from the first organization 
of this church, now ninety-seven years ago, there 
have been in the whole, including t^he seventeen first 
members, three hundred and sixty-two added to this 
church. 

One thousand four hundred and sixty-six have re- 
ceived the ordinance of baptism. 

Two hundred and ninety have owned the cove- 
nant. 

• Appendix ii. 



29 

Five hundred and fifty-seven have been joined in 
marriage, including twelve united by civil magistrates 
and others. 

Two thousand three hundred and ninety births 
are found on record, and including thirteen deaths 
on record previous to 1730, the whole number of 
deaths in this place during the century past is one 
thousand two hundred and eleven.* 

The number of persons who have sustained the 
office of deacon during the same period is twelve.t 

For almost a century, but one denomination of 
Christians, and but one religious society, have existed 
in this town. 

In 1825, a Baptist society was formed in this 
place, and a minister of that denomination was or- 
dained to the work of the ministry in that society. 

Whatever may be our denomination, whatever 
our religious creed, let us all be solicitous to imbibe 
the spirit of the religion we profess, — to obey its 
injunctions, — and to exiubit its fruits, that we may 
evince to the surrounding world that \vc have been 
with Jesus. 

On this occasion we are naturally led to some im- 
portant reflections. 

1. It is the part of wisdom to profit by observa- 
tion and experience of the past. 

As this is the last time I shall ever address you, 
my friends, on an occasion like this, shall I not be 
permitted to observe that from documcntsij: in my 
possession it appears, that near seventy years ago, 

* Appendix iii. t Appendix iv. 

X Result of the cou/icil convened at Southborough, in 1758. 



30 

the order, jieace and harmony, which prevailed in 
the civil and ecclesiastical transactions of this society, 
were subjects of public remark, and the honorable 
appellation of " peaceable town" was publicly given 
to this place. If you would continue to deserve 
and enjoy the advantages it implies — if you would 
evince to the world, that you have not degenerated 
from the virtues of your ancestors — if you would 
preserve peace, and harmony amongst yourselves — 
if you would promote the interests of piety and vir- 
tue, civil, social, and religious order in society, in 
your families, in your own souls — if you would 
transmit these invaluable blessings to your children, 
to future generations, — bring them up in the " nur- 
ture and admonition of the Lord" by precept and 
example. Take the sacred volume for your guide, 
and attend to its admonitions. " Be not carried a- 
bout by every wind of doctrine, lest ye be zealously 
affected, but not well. Study the things that make 
for peace, and whereby one may edify another. — 
Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, what- 
soever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, 
whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are 
lovely, whatsoever things are of good report ; if 
there be any virtue, if there be any praise, think on 
these things." 

2. On a review of the past, what reflections are 
suggested to every serious mind ! Less than one 
hundred and seventy years ago, and even in the 
past century, this was a howling Avilderness. Here 
the prowling wolf howled to his companions in the 
distant swamp to renew their nightly depredations 



31 

©f slaughter and blood. Here the flinty arrow, now 
found in our fields, and in the cabinets of the curi- 
ous, was winged with death at the huge bear and 
the harmless deer. Here the woods resounded 
with the dismal war-song. Here the savage pitched 
his wigwam. Here perhaps, on the very spot 
where we now worship, his superstitious devotions 
were offered to the clouds and to the thunder of 
heaven. 

Mark the pleasing contrast! The hills have be- 
come plains, and the rough places smooth under the 
persevering hand of industry. To the rude habita- 
tions and precarious fare of the savage have suceed- 
ed commodious dwellings of domestic peace, and 
plenty crowns the festive board. The wilderness 
has become a fruitful field, waving with the luxuri- 
ance of harvest, and vocal with the praises of God. 
" Instead of the th©rn has come up the fir tree, and 
and instead of the briar the myrtle tree, to beautify 
the place of the sanctuary." 

While we venerate the memory of our fathere, 
who were pioneers to prepare the way before us, 
while we admire their fortitude and perseverance in 
the face of every danger, let us imitate their piety, 
and say, " Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto 
thy name be all the glory." 

3. " The fashion of this world passeth away." — 
What changes have taken place in this small society, 
since it had a corporate existence ! — in families — in 
the external circumstances and relations of life! "Our 
fathers where are they? and the prophets, do they 
live for ever ? " A number, greater than that of the 



32 

inhabitants of tliis town, sleeps in yonder burjing- 
ground. If such be the ravages of death within so 
small a space, what have they been in the world at 
large — in all nations, since time began ! 

4. "One generation passeth away, and another 
generation cometh."" Who can be indifferent to the 
fate of those who are to succeed us? What mean 
these flowery decorations* in the sanctuary of God? 
Let them be silent monitors to the youth of this as- 
sembly. Mark attentively their bloom and their 
decline. They are lively emblems of your condi- 
tion — of beauty and decay. They speaxk a lan- 
guage too plain to be misunderstood — too impressive 
to be disregarded. Their bloom, how transient ! 
— their continuance, how short! Happiness is your 
aim; but where do you expect to find it? In the 
pleasures and amusements of the morning of life, 
or in the acquisitions of maturer age ? These are 
transient, precarious, unsatisfying, and can never an- 
swer the aspirations of the human soul. Happiness 
dwells only with Avisdom; and wdiat is wisdom? 
" The fear of the Lord is the beo^innins: of wisdom. 
Know ye the God of your fathers, and serve him 
with a perfect heart, and Avith a willing mind." — 
Then will you know, by happy experience, that 
" wisdom's ways are Avays of pleasantness, and all 
her paths are peace," — then will you secure that in- 
terest, of which these verdant branchcst arc striking 
emblems. — Perennial beauty — and immortal youth ! 

5. And now, my fellow-immortals, of every age, 
on tlie same stream of time which has borne away 

' The-meeting house was decorated with flowers and evergreens, 
t P^versjreens. 



33 

all that have preceded us to the ocean of eternity. 
Where will be all this great assembly before one 
hundred years more shall have rolled away ? Soon 
rising and succeeding generations will tread upon our 
ashes, as we have trodden upon the ruins of depart- 
ed years. Soon shall w^e pass away like a dream, 
and our memorial will be forgotten, — soon eternity 
will be present with all its realities. What then is 
our wisdom ? " The knowledge of the holy is under- 
standing:. Without holiness no man shall see the 

o 

Lord. One thing; is needful." Labor to secure a 
part in the resurrection of the just, — in the "new 
heavens, and the new earth, wherein dwelleth right- 
eousness;" — that part, which will survive the ravag- 
es of death and time, the wreck of worlds, — when 
the angel of the covenant will " lift his hand to 
heaven, and sware by him that liveth forever and 
ever, that there shall be time no longer," — and 
Avhen all the lights in the firmament Avill be ex- 
tinguished by the uncreated glory of the invisible 
God. 



APPENDIX. 



I. Page 14. 



The following are the names 
Edmund Rice, 
John Howe, 
Thomas King, 
John Bent, sen. 
William Ward, 
John May nurd, 
John Woods, 

In 1657, the following eight 
proprietors : 

William Kerly, 
John Rediat, 
Solomon Johnson, 
Samuel Rice, 



of the original petitioners : 
Richard Newton, 
Thomas Goodenow, 
Edward Rice, 
Peter Bent, 
John Ruddocke, 
Henry Rice. 

names were found among the 

John Johnson, 
Thomas Rice, 
Peter King, 
Christopher Banister. 



n. Page 28. 
The whole number of deaths in Southborough, from Octo- 
ber 9, 1799, to July 17, 1827. 



1799 4 


1807 


19 


1815 


17 


1823 


8 


1800 14 


1808 


10 


1816 


10 


1824 


11 


1801 16 


1809 


8 


1817 


16 


1825 


21 


1802 24 


1810 


11 


1818 


6 


1826 


21 


1803 21 


1811 


11 


1819 


15 


1827 


7 


1804 11 


1812 


13 


1820 


15 






1805 6 


1813 


23 


1821 


15 






1806 16 


1814 


13 


1822 


14 


Total, 


396 




BEA 


lTHS. 






Under 1 year 


61 


From 


50 to 60 


22 


From 1 to 10 years 


76 


From 


60 to 70 


42 


From 10 to 20 


24 


From 


70 to 80 


47 


From 20 to 30 


38 


From 


80 to 90 


25 


From 30 to 40 


17 


From 


90 to 100 


8 


From 40 to 5 





24 


Age unknc 


)wn 


12 



36 



DISORDERS. 



Consumption 


79 


A poplexy 


11 


Fevers 


38 


Abscess 


o 


Dysentery 


32 


Disorder of the 


heart 1 


Dropsy 


17 


Hernia 


1 


Dropsy in the hea< 


J 11 


Melancholy 


1 


Fits 


18 


Asthma 


2 


Accidents 


11 


Cancer 


6 


Decay 


39 


Inflam'n of the bowels 6 


Jaundice 


8 


Mortification 


14 


Suddenly 


8 


Palsy 


13 


Lethargy 


8 


Colic 


1 


Canker 


7 


Measles 


1 


Quinsy 


5 


Suspension of urine 2 


Worms 


5 


Unknown 


49 



The average number of deaths, during the above period, is 
14 and a fraction over. 

Of those whose ages are known, 1H8 lived beyond the age 
of 40—88 beyond the age of 70—33 beyond the age of 80 — 
8 beyond the age of 90 — and 2 lived to the age of 96 years. 

Nearly one-sixth part of those whose ages are known died 
under J year ; and about one-fifth part from 1 to 10 years of 
age. 

The prevalent disorder has been consumption, of which 
more than one-fifth part have died. 



III. Page 29. 

The average number of deaths for each year, during the 
Century past, is 12 and a fraction over. 



IV. Page 29. 

The following is a list of the Deacons in Southborough 
chuich, with the years when they were chosen : 



John Bellows, 
Jonathan Witt, 
John Amsden, 
David Woods, 
William Ward, 
Gideon Newton, 



1730 
1730 
1736 
1741 
1753 
1756 



John Fay, 1767 

Edmund Chaniberlin, 1789 
Hezekiah Fay, 1789 

Josiah Newton, 1800 

Joseph Johnson, 1816 

Brigham Fay, 1822 



APPENDIX, 

By the Committee of Arrangements , inserted at the request of flu 
Inhabitants of Sonthborough. 



At a legal town-meeting, on the first Monday of April, 1827, 
the inhabitants of Sonthborough adopted the following resolu- 
tions, viz. : 

That the 17th July next,* (the completion of a century since 
the incorporation of the town) be celebrated by a Public Dis- 
course and other appropriate services. 

That Doct. Joseph Bullard, Perley Whipple, Esq. Willard 
Newton, Esq. Mr. Jeremiah Newton, Col. Jonas Ball, Col. 
Francis B. Fay, and Mr. Gabriel Parker, be a committee 
to confer with the Rev. Mr. Parker, and make such other ar- 
rangements as were expedient and proper. 

The necessary arrangements having been made, the ladies 
of the town assembled at the meeting-house on the Ifcith with 
flowers, garlands, shrubbery, &tc. and decorated the house with 
a neatness and elegance that justly secured to them the ap- 
plause of numerous spectators. 

On the 17th a procession was formed at half past 10 o'clock, 

A. M. consisting of between four and five hundred ladies and 
gentlemen, accompanied with a band of music, under the di- 
rection of Col. Jonas Ball as Chief Marshal, assisted by Ma- 
jors Larkin Newton, and Artcmas Fay, Captams Humphrey, 

B. Wheeler, Isaac Smith, Artemas Ward, and Temple Fay, 
Lieut. Lucius Parker and Ensign Edwin T. Fay, as Deputy 
Marshals, which moved to the house of the Rev. Mr. Parker 
where the Rev. Clergy being received, returned to the meet- 
ing house, where about one thousand people were comfortably 
seated under the direction of Mr. Swain Parker, Capt. Elisha 
Johnson, Jr. Lt. Dexter Ball, and ^Ir. Moses Whiting, assist- 
ed by the Marshals. 



ORDER OF EXERCISES. 

1st, Ode. — '2d, Hymn. — 3d, Prayer by the Rev. Asa Pack, 
ard, of Lancaster. — 4th, Psalm. — 5th, Sermon by Rev. Jero- 
boam Parker, of Southboro'. — 6th, Prayer by Rev. Elisha 
Rockwood, of Westboro'. — 7th, Hymn. — 8th, Anthem. — 0th, 
Benediction. 

* Tlie town wa« incorpoiatcd July fi. 17'J7, old style. 



38 

After the services a procession was again formed and moved 
to a spacious bower, where about 300 ladies and gentlemen 
partook of a sumptuous entertainment, prepared by Mr. Fitch 
Winchester in a manner which gave universal satisfaction. 

At the table Doct. Joseph Bullard presided, assisted by 
Percy Whipple and Willard Newton, Esqs. as Vice-Presi- 
dents. 

After dinner the following toasts were read by Col. Francis 
B. Fay, which were drank with universal applause. 



TOASTS. 

1. The Day we celebrate. Which gave birth to the politi- 
cal existence of the town of Southborough. — May our grati- 
tude arise to our ancestors who laid the foundation for their 
posterity. 

2. Our Ancestors who 'petitioned for our Charier. They 
planted., our fathers ivatered, and we are reaping the increase. 

3. We venerate the heroic virtues of our ancestors, who 
braved perils by sea and land, to enjoy the soil of civil and 
religious liberty. 

4. Our natural Mother, the town of Mar l-horough. A kind 
and respectable parent who has suffered three of her children 
to establish boroughs of their own upon her own original soil. 

5. The town of Southborough. A wonderful child, an hun- 
dred years old, and, we trust, not come to its growth ! ! 

6. Our Government. May our posterity be as solicitous to 
keep and improve, as our ancestors were to adopt and pi'otect. 

7. Our Ecclesiastical History. Its foundation laid with 
Stone* — experience has taught us that some of its best materi- 
als were raised upon our own soil. 

8. Our aged fellow -citizens, who honor us with their company. 
They toiled to make its free. May %ve toil to make them 
happy. 

9. Our Country^s improvement for a century in Agriculture, 
Arts and Sciences. A star in the West, which has caused 
wonder iri the East. 

10. The Administration of John Quincy Adams. May his 
first Presidency be marked with that tinsdom which shall put 
to silence all opposition to his second. 

1 1 . Our Governor. A farmer, a jurist, and a statesman. — 
He stands at helm, steady. 

* The first minister of Southborough was the Rev. Nathan Stone — their 
present minister is a native of the town. 



39 

12. The Clergy. Shining ornaments in the hand of na- 
turCy when they preach the gospel, instead of the docb'ines of 
men. 

13, Ou7- respected Pastor. May his life and usefulness be 
continued to us and our posterity. 

The following volunteers, with many others, were given. 

By the Rev. Asa Packard, of Lancaster. 

Our posterity. May they, one hundred years hence, as just- 
ly celebrate our virtues, principles and habits, as we celebrate 
those of our ancestors. 

By William Draper, Esq. of Marlborough. 

The Friends of Liberty, who in 1765 put on record in the 
town of Southborough sentiments which would have done honor 
to a Roman Senate. — Marlborough will ever feel proud to have 
furnished a " borough^'' for such animals. 

By Richard Farwell, Esq. of Marlborough. 

The descendants of the petitioners for the act of incorporation 
of the town of Southborough. — Worthy descendants of worthy 
ancestors. 

After rising from the table, the inhabitants appointed a com- 
mittee, consisting of Doct. Joseph Bullard, Perley Whipple, 
Esq. and Col. Jonas Ball, to wait on the Rev. Mr. Parker, 
and request a copy of the foregoing discourse for the press. 
The request being granted, the inhabitants then directed the 
committee of arrangements to cause the same to be published, 
together with the proceedings of the inhabitants, order of ar- 
rangements, and exercises of the day. 



ERRATA. 
9th page — 12th line from bottom, for " recollections" read recollection. 
19th page— 4th line from bottom, for " towns" read town. 



